Child Ejected In Rollover Crash; Three Others Injured
RENSSELAER, Ind. (STMW) -- A seven-year-old boy was ejected from an SUV in a rollover crash Sunday morning on Interstate 65 near Rensselaer, Ind..
The boy — Luis Leon-Tello of Cincinnati — was trapped under the 2002 Ford Explorer and later airlifted to Arnet Clinic in Lafayette with internal injuries.
Indiana State Police said the preliminary investigation showed that around 9:50 a.m., Cincinnati resident Juan Leon-Tello, 45, was driving north on I-65 in the right lane when he hit a tire tread on the road. He lost control, veered left, over-corrected, and then the SUV began to roll into the median, where it came to rest on its side.
Passers-by stopped to check on the SUV when they realized that the boy was trapped beneath it. They pushed the Ford upright to un-pin Luis. He was a passenger in the back seat. Juan, the driver, was taken to Jasper County Hospital in Rensselaer for head and neck injuries; he was wearing a seat belt. Front seat passenger Miranda Perez, 39, of Cincinnati suffered abrasions and she was treated at Jasper County Hospital; she was wearing her seat belt.
Angelica Leon-Tello, 13, was also in the backseat and she was partially ejected out the back passenger window. She was taken to Jasper County with a hip injury.
Juan Leon-Tello told police that both children were wearing seat belts, but police found that if they were, they could not be wearing them properly. There was no child restraint system in the SUV.
Indiana State Police would like to remind parents that all children under eight must be properly fastened and restrained in a child restraint system. Children between eight and sixteen must be properly fastened and restrained by a child restraint system or a safety belt.
The Explorer was a total loss.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2012. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
